Light in the Hallway
by lexieconextreme
Summary: Ed and Al have just returned from a mission late into the night when Ed gets sick. Always count on Mustang... Parental!RoyEd


**A/N: So now we've come full circle... Thanks to anyone and everyone who followed me throughout the entire thing, or just decided to click on the Twelve Days of Christmas just because. We've now gone beyond virtual cookies. Y'all can have my freshly baked virtual brownies.**

 **Enjoy the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or any of the characters within.**

* * *

Ed was too tired to think, and that didn't happen very often. He and Al had just returned from somme mind-numbing mission in the country in which a bunch of idiots stole some cattle. He almost hated Mustang for sending them on such a ridiculous mission to begin with. That type of thing didn't need the attention of a State Alchemist, of all people. So close to Christmas too. Ed and Al were literally just returning to the barracks on Christmas Eve.

It was Ed's first year as a State Alchemist, the second since the transmutation that had taken his and Al's bodies. He and Al had agreed that they weren't going to be returning to Resembool this year. There was just too much to do, so much Ed still had to learn about his duties as a military officer. The Elric brothers just didn't have the time to go back home for the holidays.

So there they were, stumbling into the barracks at about nine thirty in the evening, Ed stamping his feet go get snow off his boots and shaking from the cold. Al wandered over to the bed Ed had claimed months ago as his and sat down beside it. Ed pulled off his coat and hung it on the bed, falling onto the bed face-first without so much as taking his boots off.

"Brother, aren't you go to take your shoes off?" Al asked in amusement. He received a muffled response, as Ed had been talking into the pillow under his face. Realising this, Edward turned his head toward his brother. "No. Too tired." What Ed didn't tell Al was that he felt...weird. There wasn't really another description. He didn't feel _bad_ , per say. But he certainly didn't feel _good_ , either. His body felt hot, and his felt like it was stuffed with cotton balls. His ears were ringing, and his eyes hurt from the amount of light in the room. But he didn't tell Al.

Al, not suspecting anything, shook his head as his brother fell into an uncomfortable sleep almost immediately afterwards. He unlaced his brother's boots and set them on the floor beside the bed, picking up another blanket from a nearby, unused bed and tucking it over his brother. Ed snuggled into the blanket in his sleep, and Al chuckled. He returned to his seat by the bed, opened his alchemy book and began to read.

* * *

It was a few hours later that Ed began to stir, drawing Al's attention away from his book. It wasn't like he just shifting his position. Ed was fighting the blanket, tossing and turning in his sleep. He moaned softly, and Al caught the words "sorry, Alphonse, I'm so sorry. You must hate me". Al stiffened. He had long held the belief that Ed thought that everything that had happened that night was his fault. Ed _would_ believe that, he was just that kind of person. No matter how many times Alphonse had tried to convince his brother he was guiltless, Ed just wouldn't listen.

Al put his book down, reached over, and gently shook his brother. "Brother...Ed, you're dreaming, wake up." It was then Al _saw_ his brother. He hadn't really looked before. Edward was sweaty and pale, eyes rolling and flicking relentlessly beneath his eyelids. Al shook his brother a little more urgently this time. "Brother, wake up! Please wake up!" Ed's eyes flickered open, though they looked glazed. Not like he was really there. "Al," he breathed softly before his eyes closed again. Al was really starting to panic.

Looking around the room, Al realized there was no one else there. Of course there wouldn't be, Al reminded himself. Everyone else would be at home with their families, asleep. Al glanced at the clock, checking the time. Eleven. Al's mind frantically searched for anything that might be able to help him. The Colonel. Al knew he lived nearby, maybe he could help.

He pulled the bright red coat from it's spot on the bed frame and gently wrapped it around his shaking brother. Al picked Ed up as carefully as he could, wishing not for the first time that his body wasn't made of metal. In this cold, Ed could freeze or get even sicker. Thinking for a moment, Al set his brother down and picked up several blankets. He carefully wrapped Ed in several of them, then opened his armor. "Sorry, brother," he whispered, settling Ed inside. Then, moving as quickly as he dared, Al opened the door and went outside. He made sure his armor was secure before heading toward Colonel Mustang's house.

* * *

Roy was almost asleep when a knock sounded at his door. Startled from sleep, he just sat there a moment, wondering if the sound had been a dream. But no. A moment later the same sound echoed throughout the house again, and Roy struggled to his feet. He went down the stairs, and as he got closer to the door the frantic banging resumed.

"I'll be there in a moment!" He called. Roy swung the door open to reveal...Alphonse Elric?

"Al?" He asked in surprise. "What are you doing here so late? Where's Fullmetal?"

"Can I come inside?" The young voice asked, and Roy was surprised by the amount of fear and worry in it. He grew concerned. "I promise I'll explain, but i need to come inside," Al said urgently. Finally, Roy moved aside and opened the door wider for the huge suit of armor.

Alphonse walked in, and upon finding the door to the living room, walked and knelt by the couch. "Alphonse? What's going on? What are you doing?"

Al ignored him and unstrapped the plate on the front of his armor, and Roy watched with a certain amount of fascination. He knew Al was literally empty on the inside, but he'd never seen it. But instead of finding an emptiness inside, there was a rather sick-looking Fullmetal. Al pulled him out gently and set him on the couch. Roy came closer and touched a hand to the young alchemist's forehead, widening his eyes when he found how warm the boy was.

Roy looked over at Al, who strapping his armor back together. "Do- do you know what's wrong with him?"

Al shook his head. "He was asleep for a few hours, but then he started tossing and turning in his sleep, and talking. He doesn't normally do that. Obviously, I couldn't tell how warm he was, but he was really pale and shaking."

"Why didn't you take him to the hospital? He'd better off there."

Al shook his head again. "Brother hates hospitals. He hates being in them, he hates the tools the doctors use, everything. I find it's best to just avoid them completely when dealing with Brother."

"He's really sick, Alphonse. I can't help him, and at this point, I don't think it really matters very much whether Fullmetal hates hospitals or not."

Al thought about this for a moment, his red soul-fire eyes darkening for a moment. "Can we at least stay here for tonight, and then I can take him to the hospital in the morning? I don't really want to move him. Not in this cold."

Roy nodded readily. "That's fine. I can take you there in the car before I go in." He frowned, watching Ed for a moment. "How was he earlier, before he went to sleep? Did he seem okay when you guys came in?"

"He was fine! Or he was acting fine...Brother doesn't like to worry me, or anyone else, for that matter. He keeps his problems to himself, thinking that he shouldn't burden anyone else with them."

Roy sighed, pulling his hand through untidy hair. He got to his feet and went into the kitchen, searching in the cupboard for a moment before finding what he wanted. He turned on the sink and came back into the room with a cold wet cloth. Roy placed it gently over Ed's forehead and eyes, watching as the small body seemed to relax at the contact of something cooler than his skin.

Roy looked up at Alphonse. "If you want, we can take him up to the guest room. The bed in there will be much more comfortable than the couch."

Al silently picked up his brother and followed Mustang through the house and up the stairs to the guest room. There, he once again pulled off Ed's jacket and boots and settled him in the blankets. Al listened as his brother's breathing evened out, and relaxed as much as his body would allow. He looked over at Mustang, who still stood in the doorway. "You can probably go rest, Colonel. I'll wake you if I need you."

Roy nodded and said "My room is the next door down on the right." He left the door open and went back to his room.

The next time he awoke, Al was frantically trying to tell him his brother had gotten worse.

* * *

It seemed like Roy had only been asleep a few minutes when his door suddenly banged open and Al was practically dragging him into Ed's room. Roy blinked, his eyes adjusting to the sudden light, only to see Ed fighting against the sheets and blankets on the bed, his body twisting in and in on itself while his lungs tried to capture air and failed.

Roy knelt by his side, trying to keep the teen from hurting himself. It was a little hard when Al seemed a little too close to panicking for Roy's liking, so he figured the best thing to do was to get him out of the room. Gripping Al's arm, he said "Go to the phone downstairs. There's a number book right beside it. I want you to call the third number down on the second page. He's a doctor. Then I want you to call Hawkeye. Her number is second in the book, right below 'Madame Christmas'. Do you hear me, Al?"

Al nodded, somehow sounding breathless, though his body required no air. "Call the doctor, third number down on the second page, then call Hawkeye, her number's second in the book." Roy nodded. "Good. Go."

Al raced down the stairs, his empty metal body echoing through the house. Roy once again knelt by Ed's side, trying to hold his spasming body down. Somehow, the boy ended up curled in Roy lap, though he'd no idea how it'd happened.

He spoke in a calming voice, trying to get Ed to stop moving. "It's all right Edward, I'm here for you. You're not alone, I'm right here. Focus on my voice."

 _Close your eyes, lay your head down_

 _Now it's time to sleep_

Eventually, the young alchemist's limbs stilled and his eyes flickered open to reveal hazy golden irises. "Mustang?" He asked, and though his voice cracked Roy could still hear the confusion. "When'd you get here?" Ed asked, his voice slurring slightly.

Roy chuckled slightly, though from relief or amusement he couldn't tell. "I think the more accurate question is, when did you get here?" Confusion flashed in the young alchemist's eyes, and he opened his mouth to voice his thoughts. But Roy shook his head. "Don't talk for a while, okay? I want you to drink something first."

He looked up to see Al standing by the door, and if Al's body hadn't been made entirely of metal, Roy would've sworn he was smiling. "Alphonse, can you get Ed something to drink?" The armor's head nodded, clanging downstairs to the kitchen. Yet another occasion where Roy regretted not getting a house with an upstairs bathroom. He grimaced.

After Al had returned with the glass, Roy helped Ed hold his head up long enough to get a few sips. The teen's head fell back against Roy's chest, and he handed the glass back to Al.

"That doctor will be here soon," Al whispered. "And Hawkeye's on her way, too."

Roy nodded. "Thank you, Al. Will you go wait at the door for them?"

"Of course," Al responded. The armor walked to the door and down the hallway steps to the kitchen to wait.

Roy turned his attention back to Ed. "What was going on with you?" He asked. "And how were you feeling before you went to sleep earlier?"

It took a moment for him to respond, but when he did, Ed's voice wasn't as croaky as it was before. He took a deep breath, then "I was feeling pretty crappy when we got off the train, but then in the cab I just started feeling weird."

"Weird?"

"Yeah. It wasn't necessarily a bad feeling, but it wasn't good either. My body felt kinda warm, and my head like it was filled with cotton balls."

"And just now? Do you remember why your body was doing that?"

"...It was just a bad dream."

"What was it about?"

"..."

Roy sighed. "Look. I know you don't like me much, and you have every reason not to. But I _am_ here to help right now, I swear. Since the war, I've had my own fair share of nightmares. I've learned that often, telling someone about it can help."

Ed didn't respond for several minutes, and Roy didn't push him. If he wanted to tell about his dream, it would be his own decision.

"It was...it was about the night. The night of the transmutation."

 _If you're scared of the darkness, I will calm your fears_

 _There's a light in the hallway, so you know I'm here_

Oh God. Of _course_ that would be what Ed's nightmares were about. Sometimes Roy forgot that Ed had been through a great deal more than most adults had, and as a result of that, his nightmares ought to be a great deal stronger, more realistic. Especially for someone with such a strong, such a strong imagination.

"And Nina and Alexander," Ed continued, breaking Roy out of his thoughts. They kind of blur together, telling me..." He trailed off.

"What do they tell you, Ed?"

"That it was my fault." His voice was so quiet, Roy strained to hear it. "They blame me for what happened. They ask me why I couldn't save them. Sometimes Al is there too. He blames me for putting him in that body, I know he does. How much must he hate me for what I did to him?"

Roy was shocked. He couldn't say anything. He forced his lungs to inhale, exhale, repeat. Then he squeezed the boy's shoulders gently. "I can promise you, Ed. Al does not hate you for what happened. He isn't that type of boy. He hates you no more than your mother, or Nina and Alexander. It wasn't your fault. It never has been, and it never will be."

 _So count your blessings every day_

 _It makes the monsters go away_

Edward was again silent, longer this time. Roy wondered if he'd fallen asleep. "Are you sure?" His voice was again so silent, Roy had to strain to hear it.

"I'm sure."

"Are you going to leave?" This question was unexpected. Roy debated for a moment before saying "Do you want me to?"

"...No."

"Then I won't.

"Thank you." And this time, Edward really did fall asleep.

 _And everything will be okay_

 _You are not alone, you are right at home_

 _-Pentatonix_

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the parental-ness! Maybe not my best story, and it has almost nothing to do with Christmas. PLEASE FORGIVE ME. Except it's not Christmas anymore, but this is a Christmas story. So I don't even know anymore...**

 **Next up to be updated...probably my Suicide Squad fic. Because I REALLY need to get that done. The others will either be deleted or updated really later.**

 **But after that, I've got a couple of what I hope or gold medal worthy ideas.**

 **BYE ;3**


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